A young man named Gabriel Nikov was the victim in a deadly shooting at Yonge and Bloor Wednesday night.
Police confirmed the man’s identity in a news release Friday morning. Investigators are still searching for three suspects in connection with the murder.
Nikov was shot in front of two coffee shops on Yonge Street just north of Bloor Street shortly after 8 p.m.
A motive for the shooting has not been released, though a woman did tell CP24 that the shooting occurred after the victim got into an altercation with a group on the street.
“He turned around to go in and they shot him five times in the back,” the woman, who identified herself as a friend of the victim, told CP24 on Wednesday. “He dropped right away.”
Nikov was a student at Central Toronto Academy, the school board confirmed in a letter distributed to parents on Thursday.
“This has been a somber day for our school community as we mourn the sudden and tragic loss of this young life,” the letter said.
The school is offering support and counselling to students who would like to speak about the tragedy.
“Some students are understandably upset,” the letter said. “Be assured that we will do all that we can to help them.”
Anyone with information is asked to contact police at (416) 808-5300 or Crime Stoppers anonymously at (416) 222-TIPS (8477).
